


Below Deck

by brooklynjbbarnes



Category: Captain America (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Angst, Captain America Steve Rogers/Modern Bucky Barnes, Drug Addiction, Drug Use, Love at First Sight, M/M, Mental Breakdown, Natasha Romanov Is a Good Bro, Shrunkyclunks, Vacation, fast burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-09-22
Updated: 2019-10-16
Packaged: 2020-10-25 20:20:29
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 8,263
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20730182
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/brooklynjbbarnes/pseuds/brooklynjbbarnes
Summary: Steve Rogers and Tony Stark do not get along. In order to attempt to settle their differences, they go an a team bonding retreat. Which in true Tony Stark fashion means Steve and all the Avengers are dragged halfway across the world to the Italian coast for a two week super yacht charter.Bucky Barnes works as a chief stew on a superyacht. He just wants to get through the charter season with his sanity intact. His whole life is flipped upside down when he meets Steve Rogers and falls in love with him.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Full disclosure I previously posted this story last year, due to life and school I was unable to finish it. At this time I'm in good place to start writing regularly. So, I decided to repost and edit it to make it even better than before!

Bucky woke up to the unwelcome sound of his alarm clock. He cracked his eyes open and groaned. He crawled out of the top bunk in his cabin and stumbled a little bit as the boat rocked underneath him. They were anchored in rough waters which meant his third stew, Sharon, was probably somewhere puking up her breakfast.

He steadied himself on the bedpost, trying not to wake up his second stew, Wanda. He pulled his black work shorts on and haphazardly threw on his blue polo with the yacht’s logo on the chest.

Bucky slowly made his way to the crew kitchen, most of the deckhands were already awake and getting ready to dock at the port in Capri. He waited patiently for the Keurig to brew his coffee, leaning on the counter rubbing the sleep out of his eyes.

It had been a long night, the charter from hell was finally coming to an end. The primary was an heiress from California who was strictly kosher, but her other guests were not, some were vegan, some were pescatarian, there were so many different fucking dietary preferences that Bucky thought his head was going to explode. Bucky fucking hated rich people, they had more money than sense, like who the fuck sits down for dinner at eleven pm.

Bucky didn’t end up getting to bed until around three last night, Wanda stumbling in even later at around five. Bucky sighed into his hazelnut flavored coffee. He sat down at the kitchen table and began unpeeling his banana when his third stew came running in panicked.

“Bucky, the guests are up, and they want Bloody Marys, how do you make those, we don’t have any mix?” she said in a rush.

“Are you fucking kidding me?” Bucky muttered under his breath. He gave her a closed-lipped smile or dubbed by his close friends and family his pissed off face.

“1/4 cup of tomato juice, 1.5 ounces of vodka, a teaspoon of Worcestershire, a couple of dashes of Tabasco, a pinch of salt and pepper, ice, and a stalk of celery. Ask if they want lemon. Now if you’d excuse me, I’d like to enjoy my breakfast in peace,” he said coldly.

“Could you write that down for me?” she asked.

“Fucking google it Sharon,” he said standing up abruptly and taking his mug and banana with him as he stormed off to the front deck, where all the deckhands worked preparing for departure. He sat on the deck with his back resting on the side of the boat.

He finally got to enjoy the potassium filled goodness that was his banana, soon followed by a cigarette to relieve his stress.

Sam Wilson the bosun came up to him with a smirk on his face, sitting down next to him. Bucky passed the man his unfinished cigarette, Sam took a long drag.

“You usually only smoke when you're stressed, what’s going on?” Sam asked looking Bucky in the eyes.

“I could say the same to you,” Bucky said having taken back the cigarette, letting out a big puff of smoke.

“You first,” Sam prompted.

“Sharon didn’t know how to make a fucking Bloody Mary; said we didn’t have any mix.” Sam laughed.

“Scott has been kissing Captain Carol’s ass the whole damn charter,” Sam complained. The bosun oversaw all the deckhands, but Scott was the lead deckhand. The two could be a little combative. Bucky laughed.

“You do know Sharon’s last job was on a booze cruise, right?” Sam asked with a smirk.

Bucky snorted, “I kind of figured that one out for myself but it’s not what her CV said.” Bucky was learning as they got further into the charter season that Sharon’s CV, for lack of a better term, was complete and utter bullshit.

“I mean what kind of fucking yachtie gets seasick, Jesus Christ,” Bucky complained to Sam. “What time is it?”

“Ten,” Sam answered glancing down at his watch.

“I gotta get ready for these pieces of shit to disembark, I’ve never been more excited for charter guests to fucking leave,” Bucky griped pushing himself off the deck and to the stairs leading him to the crew cabins.

\---

“Everybody in their whites!” Captain Carol called from their walkie system. Bucky stripped in the room he shared with his second stew, Wanda.

“This would be weird if you weren’t gay,” Wanda said, they stood there looking at each other. Wanda in her bra and panties and Bucky in his snug boxer-briefs.

“Trust me, Wanda, your lady bits don’t really do it for me,” he snarked, pulling up his navy-blue slacks. She threw her shirt at him. He buttoned up his crisp white button-down and fastened his belt.

They made their way up to see the guests off. The deckhands had been working hard to get the guests luggage off the boat. Bucky put on his fake service industry smile as he spotted the guests relaxing on the deck furniture waiting for the ‘okay’ to get off.

The ‘okay’ was given by Captain Carol, the group faced the crew that had served them for three painstakingly long days. Bucky looked the primary in the eye, smile warm but his eyes were dead and cold, years in the service industry does that to a person. Bucky watched as the spray-tanned fake bitch gave Captain Carol an envelope with their tip that was so thin it made Bucky’s eyes twitch. 

The crew exchanged looks; they knew the tip wasn’t big. Unless the Federal Reserve magically started making $1,000 bills.

They watched as the demon guests left the boat, grabbing their luggage, and getting into the waiting cabs at the end of the dock.

“Good fucking riddance,” Bucky said breaking the silent tension among the crew. Some laughed, others were still upset about the tip.

Captain Carol shot him a look and sighed, “It’s time for the tip meeting.”

They all gathered in the crew lounge and sat in silence as Carol counted the tip. Carol recounted a few times to be certain, “it’s only $12,000.”

“Motherfucking bitch,” Bucky cussed putting his head in hands. A standard tip on was around $16,000-$20,000. Most super-yacht charters cost $100,000 for 3 days, 15-20% tip is standard. Most yacht charters last 6 weeks with a constant rotation of guest every three days. Bucky did two in a row every year. His salary as the chief stew is relatively low, he depended on the tips.

Bucky was currently in the middle of his second 6-week charter of the year. He had 3 weeks left to go, he couldn’t wait.

“I know this sucks, it’s not what you deserve. They were horrible people and that’s the end of it, there’s nothing you guys could’ve done better,” Captain Carol said addressing the glum faces of her crew.

\---

Wanda and Bucky were hard at work folding laundry and cleaning the main salon, while Sharon worked on the guest cabins.

“I’m pretty sure Sharon lied on her CV,” Bucky confessed.

“Well no shit,” Wanda said, continuing to iron and fold bed sheets.

“I need to confront her about it,” he admitted. “Make sure she’s aware that her CV is quite matching up with her skills.”

“I would,” Wanda agreed turning off the iron and putting it away. “I can leave if you want to talk to her now.”

“Yes, thank you,” he told Wanda and she left the salon. “Sharon, Sharon. Bucky” he called over the radio.

“This is Sharon,” she replied.

“Will you meet me in the main salon?”

“Copy,” she responded.

Sharon walked in closing the door behind her, “Hey, what’s up?” she questioned.

Bucky got into Chief Stew mode, “we need to talk about your CV,” he said seriously.

Sharon looked nervous, “Yeah… what about it?”

“When I read it, it said you had experience in silver service,” Bucky said looking her dead in the eye.

Sharon coughed awkwardly, “I mean yeah… I’ve worked in the service industry.”

“Working in the service industry could mean working as a fucking cashier at McDonald’s, there is a monumental difference between the regular service industry and the silver service industry. So, let me repeat myself, did you work in silver service?” he asked sternly.

“Um… I didn’t put silver service on my CV, I’m not even sure what that is.”

Bucky’s eyebrows shot up to his hairline, he laughed petulantly, “Ok, Sharon, why don’t I go get your CV and we’ll see what it really says,” he said with a patronizing smile. Sharon swallowed nervously, not able to look Bucky in the eye.

Several minutes later Bucky came back with Sharon’s CV in hand and a smug smile. He handed her the CV, “Sharon, does this or does this not say silver service?”

“It does,” she confirmed.

“Ok, then why did you put on there if you don’t even know what it is?” he asked calmly.

“I didn’t even see it. When I made it, I gave it to a friend who’s worked on yachts to look over and spruce up.”

Bucky nodded taking back the paper, “Ok, while you’re here let’s work out how much the rest of your CV overestimates your skillset.”

“You have barista training?” Bucky questioned moving down to the second item on her list.

“Yes, I mean I have my bartenders license,” Sharon said.

Bucky sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose, “Barista means coffee, Sharon.”

“Ok, well, how hard can coffee be, you just put the pod in the machine and press the button,” Sharon defended.

Bucky laughed and shook his head in disbelief, “You’ve got to be fucking kidding me, right?”

“Why are you so hard on me, I’m trying my best,” Sharon said storming out of the room.

Bucky was going to have a chat with Captain Carol.

\---

Bucky found Captain Carol in the bridge. He knocked quietly on the door before letting himself in. Captain Carol Danvers was an intimidating woman, she even scared the shit out of Bucky whose nickname on his previous charter was 'chief intimidator.'

She spotted him, “Hey Bucky, how’s it going?” she asked setting down her book.

“Not so good Cap, we need to talk about Sharon,” he said seriously. Handing Carol the CV in question.

“She lied on her CV,” Bucky started. “When I confronted her about it, she said she didn’t write that she worked in silver service, that she had a friend spruce it up for her.”

Carol nodded, flipping through the pages.

“Half of its bullshit, I asked her about her barista training. She thought I meant bartending, when I corrected her, she told me all she had to do to make coffee is put the pod in the machine and press the button.”

“I had my suspicions when she got seasick,” Carol admitted. “I can tell right now I’m not happy but—”

“She used to work on a goddamn booze cruise for Christ sakes,” Bucky continued ranting, he was over Sharon. He had to pick up all her slack. He was the one woken up at 8 in the morning after going to bed at 2 because Sharon couldn’t handle three guests for breakfast. It was tiring, he wanted a new stewardess, a better one. Captain Carol was the only one who had the power to fire her.

Carol sighed, “I get it Bucky I really do, but third stew is an entry-level position. As the chief stew it is your responsibility to train her on our protocols,” she reasoned. Bucky rolled his eyes and crossed arms over his chest and gave her the ‘are you fucking kidding me’ look.

“I wouldn’t have hired her if I knew half her CV was bullshit,” Bucky argued.

“I’m not arguing over a damn resume,” Carol said sternly. “It’s a life lesson kid, people will always lie on their resume. If you want to be the boss, that’s a lesson you have to learn.”

“Fine,” Bucky huffed.

“Since you’re here, now would be a perfect time to go over the preference sheet for the next charter,” Carol said.

She picked up her radio, “Vision and Sam come to the bridge, copy.”

“Copy,” Sam responded.

“Copy,” came Vision’s posh British accent.

Sam got there first, followed by Vision. They both sat down. Yes, Vision is his real name, his parents were British socialites turned hippies. 

Captain Carol had the preference sheets in hand, she cleared her throat. “Our next guests are extremely high profile; we’ve been ordered to sign NDAs before the board.”

“This is also unusual because these guests have chartered the boat for the next two weeks,” she said.

Bucky was confused, what would happen to their day in between. They used that day to relax and then restock the boat, clean the cabins, etc.

“How is that going to work?” Vision asked the question that was on everyone’s mind.

“They will disembark every three days like normal charter and stay at a hotel on land. During this time we will flip the boat and you guys will have your night off like usual.”

Bucky nodded, this could work, as long as these guests weren’t heinous assholes, like the last ones. “So, who are we serving?” Bucky asked.

“Tony Stark and the Avengers,” Carol said seriously.

Bucky’s eyes grew wide, he was working when the invasion of New York happened last year. He’d heard about it from his friends and family and witnessed the media’s obsession with these group of superheroes.

“Vision, for the food they’re open to anything you want to make. They want you to keep in mind that you’ll have to make super-sized portions for Thor and Mr. Rogers. With enhanced bodies come enhanced appetites if you know what I mean.”

Vision nodded, “Pasta, lots and lots of pasta.”

“Bucky, Mr. Stark had provided us with a list of alcohol, he wants to be provided on the boat,” she said handing over a list.

Bucky read it over, “this is doable,” he shrugged.

“Also, Mr. Rogers birthday is on July 4th and they wanted to throw a party for him while they’re on board. Mr. Stark insists it be American themed.”

Bucky rolled his eyes, how tacky. “Got it,” he said.

“That’s about it, go inform your teams.”


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tony took it upon himself to be in charge of the aux cord. There’s nothing like the soothing sounds of Iron Maiden at 9:30 in the morning. Steve was about thirty seconds away from beating himself to death on the car window when they finally arrived at the marina.

It took Steve every ounce of willpower he had not to roll his eyes. The Avengers had just come back from their recent mission. Tony was leading the debriefing, much to Steve’s dismay. He stood at the front of the room, with his cocky smile and his douchey attitude and went on about his contributions to the mission.

It wasn’t one particular thing about Tony that annoyed Steve. It was a collection of things, his awful personality, his reckless spending of money, and the fact that he was so self-absorbed he was unwilling to give anyone else praise. He was cocky and incredibly flashy. Which conflicted deeply with Steve’s humble self-righteousness and his habit of being a stubborn asshole.

Steve shifted uncomfortably in his chair, if Stark was so rich, you’d think he’d be able to invest in some comfortable fucking office chairs? Natasha eyed him carefully, she knew how to read him like a book. It was terrifying in all honesty, but Steve knew she had no bad intentions.

“In conclusion, we were able to stop the terrorists from taking over the city because I am a genius engineer and my robots saved the day,” Tony spoke from the front of the room.

Steve inhaled sharply and huffed out angrily, “I think it was a team effort, Tony,” Steve said.

“Maybe so,” Stark said with a shrug.

“Really?” Steve questioned with disbelief at Stark’s arrogance. “Everybody played a part in today’s op; I think it’s incredibly rude of you to take all the credit. The mission ran almost perfectly, we all a did our jobs, and I would appreciate it if you’d top undercutting your teammates' success.”

“It would have run perfectly if you two would stop bickering all the damn time,” Nat piped up from beside Steve.

“Agreed,” said Clint nodding aggressively.

“Maybe I wouldn’t have to argue with him if he wasn’t so arrogant and narcissistic.”

“Says the most self-righteous man walking the face of the earth,” Tony spat back.

Nat crossed her arms over her chest, her lips pressed together, emotion unreadable, “for the health of the team I suggest you solve your differences,” she said before getting up and leaving the conference room.

Tony just rolled his eyes and after everyone left the room except for Steve and Tony. The other man broke the awkward silence, “So Cap are you finally ready to stop being such a stubborn asshole.”

“Fuck you,” Steve blurted before exiting swiftly.

Tony stood there, mouth wide open, laughing to himself. Steve never cursed. Tony made Captain America say ‘fuck.’

\---

“Natasha, I hate him,” Steve said pacing in the living room of her suite in the tower.

“I know you do Steve, but one day it’s going to put us in danger on a mission,” she said reclined on her couch flipping through the pages of a fashion magazine. She looked up at Steve with an assessing look. “Please don’t get defensive on me,” she said before Steve could even get out a word.

“I wasn’t,” Steve sputtered stupidly, “but he needs to change his behavior more than I do.”

Natasha rolled her eyes and sighed, “Look, Steve, I’m going, to be honest with you, and know I say this with all the love in the world. You can be a bit of a control freak, you’re used to being the only leader when working with a team—”

“Natasha, don’t put it all on me.”

“You’re being defensive Steve,” Natasha glared, Steve looked sheepish. “If you’d let me finish. You’re used to being in charge and when Tony challenges you with his pompous douchebaggery you get upset. You guys need to learn to work together and compromise, you both are competent leaders and if you’d work together the Avengers would be unstoppable. Hell, if you both were willing to set aside your differences, I’d bet you could even be friends.”

Steve scoffed, “I seriously doubt that.

Natasha closed her magazine and set it on the coffee table, “just think about it Steve,” she said as she stood up. “I’m going to bed; you can crash on the couch if you want, I know it’s a long way back to Brooklyn.”

Steve yawned, “I think I’ll take you up on that.”

\---

Steve awoke to the delicate sounds of somebody beating two frying pans together.

Natasha emerged from her bedroom, the early morning sunlight illuminating her blood-red hair, which was sticking up in several different directions due to her untamable bedhead. The banging continued.

“Fuck me,” Steve said groggily, throwing the blankets off his legs and leaving the room to investigate.

In the middle of all the Avengers suites was a common room. In that common room, Tony Stark was standing on the coffee table banging two frying pans together, screaming “Hear ye! Hear ye!” and the absolute look of glee that was on his face when he saw Steve emerge from Nat’s room made Steve’s blood boil.

“Are you two fucking?” he said way too loudly.

Steve rolled his eyes, “No Tony we’re not, maybe you should learn some respect and phrase the question a little more eloquently.”

Tony put the pans down and stepped off the coffee table and walked up to face Steve, “Okay, So, are you Captain Rogers fornicating with Ms. Romanoff?” he asked with a shit-eating grin.

Steve remained stoic and walked off to the kitchen to start brewing the coffee.

Bruce and Natasha emerged from their respective suite moments later. Both stepped in the common room, Natasha rubbing the sleep out of her eyes. Bruce with a puzzled look on his face.

“What the hell was that banging?” Bruce asked making a beeline for Steve and the coffee maker.

“I think Tony has an announcement,” Clint said from the top of the refrigerator, right above Bruce. Bruce jumped and clutched his chest dramatically.

“Don’t fucking do that Clint,” Bruce chastised.

“Do what?” Clint asked obliviously.

“You know to climb on shit and scare me.”

Clint shrugged, “sorry man,” he wasn’t sorry.

“Barton is right, I do have an announcement,” Tony said following everyone into the kitchen. “We’ll wait until Thor wakes up.”

“That man could sleep through a goddamn house fire,” Natasha commented sipping on her coffee.

“I have an idea,” Steve said walking to the fridge and pulling out the four pounds of bacon they have stored in there. “Nat, can you start on the waffle batter?” Steve asked.

“You got it, Cap.”

“And Tony grab me one of those frying pans on the coffee table,” Steve said, he was going to attempt to be civil with the other man.

“No problemo, Capitano,” was Tony’s response.

\---

Thor emerged from his bedroom just as the last of the bacon was hitting the pan.

“What is the delightful smell?” he asked walking into the kitchen. Steve glanced at him and bit his lip. He was shirtless, wearing lowriding gray sweatpants with no underwear. Steve could tell.

“I see those wondering eyes Cap,” Natasha commented taking another waffle out of the iron. Steve blushed and focused on not burning the bacon.

“Thor!” Tony called happily munching on his waffle.

“Hello man of iron, is that a waffle I see?” Thor asked licking his lips.

“It is,” Natasha said. Thor sat down on a barstool at the kitchen counter. Natasha slid him a plate, “how do six waffles and a half-pound of bacon sound?”

“Splendid, Midgardian breakfast foods are my favorite,” Thor said with his golden smile.

Steve had to agree with Thor’s opinion as he piled his plate high with waffles and using a second plate for his bacon. They all ate at the kitchen counter, happily talking to each other. Well mostly, Steve and Tony chose to ignore each other.

“Tony, what was your announcement?” Clint prompted he sat perched on the top of the fridge food in his lap.

“Oh, yes,” Tony said clasping his hands together in excitement. “We are going on vacation!” he exclaimed.

“What?” Steve asked, the other Avengers shooting each other questioning glances.

“Well, I took what Natasha said to heart, and what a better way to bond as a team and resolve are differences than being stuck on a boat in the middle of the Mediterranean for two weeks?” Tony said with a smug grin looking at Steve. Steve shook his head and looked at Nat. She was amused, she liked Tony’s plan. Steve felt appalled and betrayed. This was not going to work; he might murder Tony at the end of the two weeks.

“Are you kidding me?” Steve said raising his voice slightly. Bruce looked nervous, Thor was confused, Clint remained unbothered.

“I’m dead serious, we leave for Italy first thing in the morning, so you better start packing,” Tony announced. Bruce choked on his coffee.

“So soon? Tony, I don’t know if the Hulk and a boat are the best combination,” Bruce stated worry clear in his voice.

“Yeah your probably right, but Bruce Banner and a boat sound like a delightful combination,” Tony said with an unrelenting smile. Bruce figured out pretty quickly that he probably didn’t have a choice.

“I think it’s a great idea, Tony, where are we going?” Natasha asked.

“We’ll be sailing out of Naples all the way Sicily on a private yacht I chartered.”

Steve glared at Tony, “this is a terrible idea, I’m not going,” he said storming out of the kitchen into his Natasha's bedroom.

\---

Steve woke up to Natasha’s head laid on his shoulder, a puddle of drool collecting on his shirt. “Gross,” he mumbled barely awake.

“We’ll be beginning our descent into Naples in about twenty minutes,” the pilot announced over the speakers.

Steve sighed; Natasha had convinced him to come on this trip. He’d honestly rather eat glass than reconcile his differences with Tony. Yet, here he is. Natasha and her years of experience manipulating men finally came to bite him in the ass.

They were flying comfortably on Tony’s private jet. Steve let his eyes roam across the cabin, everyone was asleep, except for Bruce who was reading with a small light.

Steve shook Nat awake, she glared at him.

“What Steve?” she asked.

“We’re beginning our descent soon,” Steve informed her.

“Ok,” she said sitting up. “Are you excited?” she asked with a smile.

Steve shrugged, “last time I was in Italy I was being attacked by Nazis, I’m excited to see how it’s changed since then.”

Natasha laughed, “Steve, no offense buddy, but you need to get laid.”

Steve eyes widened, “Natasha, I’m okay in that department believe me.”

Natasha smirked, “Steve I know you’re not, and it’s okay. Now that I know you’re into men, my pool to choose from got a whole lot bigger.”

Steve blushed, “shut up.”

\---

A private car took them to the marina. Steve was fucking over this vacation already. Tony took it upon himself to be in charge of the aux cord. There’s nothing like the soothing sounds of Iron Maiden at 9:30 in the morning. Steve was about thirty seconds away from beating himself to death on the car window when they finally arrived at the marina.

“We have arrived!” Tony shouted from the passenger seat. Steve grabbed his luggage out of the trunk of the luxury SUV. He helped Natasha grab hers before following closely behind Tony. Thor, Bruce, and Clint not far behind.

In the distance, Steve saw a group of people wearing matching uniforms with glowing smiles on their face. They waved when they saw Tony, a blonde woman stepped out of the group and shook Tony’s hand.

“Good Morning!” she exclaimed as the rest of the group caught up with them. “My name is Captain Carol Danvers I will be responsible for getting you guys to Sicily at the end of these two weeks,” she introduced politely shaking everyone’s hands.

“Nice to meet you, ma’am,” Steve said shaking her hand.

After greeting everyone Carol stood in front of the group, “I’m going to head to the bridge along with my deckhands to prepare to disembark. I’m going to leave you with my stewards to give you a tour of the boat and get you settled in,” she said eventually waving goodbye and disappearing into the boat's interior.

“Hey everyone! My name is James I’ll be your Chief Steward for the duration of the trip,” said a mystery voice.

Steve looked up and the most gorgeous human being Steve had ever laid eyes on was right in front of him. James continued to talk but Steve couldn’t focus on anything else but the man’s beautiful crystalline blue eyes and chiseled cheekbones. The toned body James was hiding under that gaudy white button-up. Steve was in love.

Natasha nudged him. “What?” he asked her.

“James is talking to you,” she said amused.

James laughed nervously, “You must be Captain Rogers,” he prompted.

“Um, yeah, thanks, Steve,” he really couldn’t form a sentence.

“Sorry about him, he wants you to call him Steve,” Natasha said translating Steve’s gibberish.

“OK, Steve why don’t you follow me, and I’ll show you guys around the boat,” James said.

Two weeks on a boat trying to control himself around this guy? Steve was so fucked.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yay! Another day, another chapter. I love y'alls comments so keep them rollin in!


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "God, I’m so sexually frustrated, I might even sex with a woman,” he lamented with a big sigh.
> 
> “Okay that’s a lie, you act like we have teeth down there,” she said with a skeptical look on her face.
> 
> “You don’t?” he questioned acting seriously.

When Bucky awoke from his drunken slumber his mouth was dryer than the goddamn Sahara Desert. Accompanied by a headache that felt like somebody took a drill to his skull. His head was swimming and took all the willpower he could muster not to puke on Wanda who was peacefully sleeping in the bunk below him. The only coherent thought floating through Bucky’s head is ‘fuck tequila’. We’ve all been there.

He picked up his phone and checked the time, it was 8:30. “Fuckkkkk,” he groaned rolling out of bed and onto the floor with a loud thump. He made his way to the bathroom; he pulled the industrial size bottle of Advil he keeps in the medicine cabinet and dry-swallowed three of the tiny lifesavers.

His next stop was the kitchen where he was going to use the espresso machine to kill his sorrows. He was met by Scott Lang the lead deckhand who was picking at his cereal.

“Looking good Barnes,” Scott said commenting on Bucky’s unbrushed hair and the probable dark bags under his eyes.

Bucky also made note that he was only wearing a tight white T-shirt and a pair of maroon boxer briefs. Bucky shrugged, “My hangover said you can go fuck yourself, Scott,” Bucky said while downing his first espresso.

“How’s the head?” Scott asked sincerely.

“Honestly, it feels like I got hit in the face, by a train,” Bucky remarked beginning to brew his second espresso.

“Guests arrive in two hours dude, and they're the fucking Avengers, you better get yourself together,” Scott remarked.

Bucky rolled his eyes, “Don’t remind me. How much did I drink last night?” Bucky asked, unprepared for the answer.

“Do you mean before or after you blacked out and Sam had to carry you back to the boat,” Scott laughed putting his bowl in the sink to be washed.

“Goddamnit,” Bucky muttered rubbing circles into his aching temples. “Why do I do this to myself?” he asked rhetorically.

Scott chuckled, “I mean if I had your job, I would want to drink myself into oblivion too.”

“At least somebody understands my struggle,” Bucky joked. Bucky drank his second espresso and wiped down the counter.

“Well I got to go,” Scott said. “We’re docking soon, and I want to get a jump on it,” he explained.

“Trying to impress the Cap?” Bucky questioned with a raised eyebrow.

Scott nodded, “Trying to get a good reference so I can get a bosun position next charter season.”

“I wish you luck, I’ll see you when the guests arrived,” Bucky said waving goodbye at Scott as he left.

Bucky sat down at the table in the crew mess and poured himself a bowl of cereal. Bucky was nervous about the upcoming weeks. Bucky’s used to handling rich people, not superheroes. He doesn’t know what their expectations are.

His train of thought was interrupted by Sharon stumbling into the kitchen. She put her head in her hands, running her fingers through her disheveled blonde hair.

“Hangover?” Bucky questioned. She nodded glumly sitting at the kitchen table.

“I took a few Advil, just waiting for those to kick in,” she mentioned slumping down onto the table’s surface.

Bucky nodded; this was awkward. It was a commonly known fact that Bucky didn’t like Sharon. No matter how much he disliked her, Bucky would never let that get in the way of his professionalism.

“Do you know how to use the espresso machine?” he asked kindly. She shook her head. “Here I’ll teach you how to make one, bet it’ll make you feel better.”

“mmkay,” she grumbled getting up and following Bucky to the coffee maker.

He explained to her how to fill the portafilter, packing in the ground coffee and placing the filter into the machine. “Next thing you’re going to do is hit brew and stop it when the espresso turns into a nice yellowish color. It should take about 25 seconds,” he explained. She did successfully on her first attempt.

“Nice job Sharon,” he complimented, which really took a lot of effort because the dumb bitch wants to put barista experience on her CV without knowing how to make a fucking espresso.

“See I’m not totally inept,” she joked.

“I wouldn’t go that far,” Bucky responded. Sharon laughed, she thought he was joking.

___

Bucky had a few hours to kill before the guests would arrive, he pulled out his phone to facetime his sister. She picked up on the second ring.

“Hey Bucky!” her smile beaming at the camera.

“Hi Becca,” he grinned back at her.

“You caught me at a great moment,” she said her smile was beaming.

“What’s up?” he questioned.

“Well, I just got back from my 36-week appointment,” she started. His sister was heavily pregnant, Bucky was praying that his first niece wouldn’t be born until he got back. Hopefully, he could hold on until Bucky got back. His sister's due date was at the end of July, he should be back by then.

“And…” he prompted.

“She’s healthy, we have sonograms I’ll text them to you,” Becca replied.

“Please do,” he responded.

“How’s the job going?” she asked curiously, he sighed and rolled his eyes.

“Stressful as usual, but everything’s been pretty smooth sailing so far, figuratively of course,” he answered.

“Rough waters?” she questioned.

He nodded vigorously, “enough to make my third stewardess sick.”

Becca laughed, “seriously? Does she still suck at her job?”

“Oh yeah, found out yesterday that she lied on her CV and Carol isn’t going to do a damn thing about it.”

“Well bro, you’re three weeks away from being home. Hang in there, hopefully, my little one can wait until then. If not, you’ll be on facetime the whole time if you’re able,” she said.

“Thanks, Becca, I love you,” Bucky replied and bringing the conversation to an end.

“We love you too, Uncle Bucky,” she replied showing off her belly, Bucky couldn’t help the wide grin that formed on his face.

“Talk to you later, bye!” Bucky waved at the camera, before clicking the red button.

___

He found Wanda in their shared cabin, she laid in bed on her phone.

“What’s up?” he greeted flopping on the bed at her feet.

“Not much,” she replied. “Texting Pietro.”

“What’s he up too?” he asked trying to start a conversation. He was so bored they still had 30 minutes before the guests arrived.

“Good, he’s still running track and annoying the shit out of me,” she responded.

“So, the usual,” Bucky laughed. “I can’t believe the Avengers are going to be on the boat in less than two fucking hours!”

Wanda popped up excitedly, it was finally sinking in. “I know this is so exciting!” she smiled. “Who are you the most excited for?” she asked.

Bucky felt like a fucking schoolgirl, “Captain America or Thor, really can’t tell which one is the hottest.”

“Wow, your so fucking gay,” she responded with an eye roll.

“Okay, but like imagine how their bodies must look under those uniforms. Can you tell I haven’t had sex in two and a half months?” he asked her with a laugh.

“No,” she said sarcastically, shaking her head.

“God, I’m so sexually frustrated, I might even sex with a woman,” he lamented with a big sigh.

“Okay that’s a lie, you act like we have teeth down there,” she said with a skeptical look on her face.

“You don’t?” he questioned acting seriously.

“Shut up,” she said smacking his arm, “we should probably get ready.”

They made their way to get ready in their tiny bathroom. Bucky brushed his hair and styling it with a little bit of pomade. He asked Wanda for her concealer. He wouldn’t want the Avengers to see the bags under his eyes and confuse him for a swamp monster, or whatever the fuck kind of villains they defeat.

“Everybody in their whites!” Captain Carol called before Bucky and Wanda made their way to the main deck.

\---

Bucky stood on the dock dressed in his white uniform, his ear-length dark hair perfectly quaffed. He was looking hot and also feeling hot because it was like 90 degrees outside. In the distance, he saw six figures approaching rolling suitcases behind them. Leading the group, was a face he thought he’d only see on magazine covers, Tony Stark. Damn, he was short as fuck.

Not far behind, was a woman with blood-red hair, Bucky wasn’t normally attracted to females but if he was, that would be his type of woman.

Next to her stood a tall pale blond man, with perhaps the nicest body Bucky had ever seen. He was wearing a tight white T-shirt that was practically see-through. Bucky almost drooled on himself. He was not going to have sexual fantasies about Captain America, or at least that’s what he tried to convince himself.

Bucky saw Thor in the distance, that man was yummy. Alien dick made him nervous though. Hawkeye and the human hulk followed him chatting as they approached the boat.

Bucky kept tried to keep his eyes off of Captain America as Carol went on her usually introductory spiel.

When Carol and most of the deck crew broke off from the group going to help carry the luggage onto the boat. Bucky began his introduction.

“Hey everyone! My name is James I’ll be your Chief Steward for the duration of the trip,” he said waving at the group of sexy superheroes.

Captain America looked at him strangely, it made very fucking uncomfortable. Was he judging Bucky? Maybe he could tell Bucky was gay, he’s from the 40s he might be a homophobe. Bucky didn’t think he came off as gay, he had a very deep voice and his mannerisms were very masculine. Hell, everyone he knew had been surprised when he came out as gay.

“My team and I will be taking care of you for the duration of the trip, this is my second stew Wanda, and my third stew Sharon,” Bucky said introducing his team.

Bucky then went around introducing himself and shaking hands with all the Avengers. He left the Captain for last because the man was still staring at him.

“Hi, my name is James, you must Captain Rogers,” Bucky said sticking his hand out for the captain to shake.

It took a nudge from the Black Widow for Steve to finally snap out of it.

“You must be Captain Rogers,” he repeated with a nervous chuckle, this dude was weird as fuck.

“Um, yeah, thanks, Steve,” the Captain said back to him what the fuck does that mean.

“Sorry about him, he wants you to call him Steve,” Natasha replied for Steve.

“OK, Steve why don’t you follow me, and I’ll show you guys around the boat,” James said.

He began walking up the ramp of the boat to the main deck, he showed them the guest lounge where the bar was.

“Hope you got all the alcohol I requested,” Tony piped up from the back. “I’m looking to let loose tonight.” Steve eyed him with disgust. Was Bucky picking up some tension between the two? Sure, it was a quick nasty look thrown Tony’s way, followed by more awkward staring at Bucky. He wasn’t going to dwell on it.

“Of course, everything arrived this morning,” Bucky replied with his effective customer service smile.

“Fantastic,” Tony said clasping his hands together.

Bucky led them to the deck with the hot tub and deck chairs. Then he showed him to their outside dining area.

“This is where all meals will be served,” Bucky presented the room. “Which also leads to my next question, do you guys want to be served lunch first or do you want us to launch the water toys?” he asked.

“Lunch,” Stark answered almost immediately.

“Why don’t you ask the rest of us first, Tony?” Steve asked arms crossed over his chest pointing a cold look at the other man.

“Sorry, my bad,” the man said almost sarcastically. “What do you guys want?”

“Lunch,” everyone but Steve voted.

“Okay, Steve?” Tony asked incredulously.

“Lunch,” Steve replied with a smirk.

“What the fuck, Steve?” Tony replied angrily.

“You waited for no input from us that’s why I said what I said, didn’t mean we didn’t want the same thing,” Steve said.

Ok, so there was some tension there Bucky confirmed. He stood awkwardly as the two men brooded in silence.

“Ok, so lunch it is, let me notify our chefs and then show you to your cabins.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> keep the comments coming loves


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bucky was exasperated, “you don’t have to do this,” he said with the best customer voice he could muster and charming ass smile. When in reality all he wanted to say was, ‘put the fucking plate down you sexy motherfucker.’

Dinner was running smoothly, Bucky had everything under control. These guests were some of the easiest guests this season, yes, even Stark was laid back with his requests. Bucky really had everything under control, until Steve decided he was going to help clear the table. Who the fuck volunteers to clear the table and do the dishes on their own fucking vacation? His mind was blown.

Bucky was taking his sweet time cleaning up the appetizer dishes. What most guests don’t understand is he has a good reason for this. A REALLY good reason. Vision had yet to finish preparing the main course. Bucky was trying to buy a little time to allow Vision to finish.

Bucky guesses he was going to slow for the Captain’s liking, so Steve decided to get up from his chair and start clearing dishes. The gesture was sweet and so helpful, but so unwelcome. Bucky couldn’t even put into words how absolutely fucking absurd this situation was.

Bucky was exasperated, “you don’t have to do this,” he said with the best customer voice he could muster and charming ass smile. When in reality all he wanted to say was, ‘_put the fucking plate down you sexy motherfucker.’ _

But all Steve replied was, “I’d be happy to.”

And all Bucky could say was, “thank you.”

Bucky sighed, “follow me,” he said leading Steve to the dish pit. Bucky set down the plates. Steve picked up a sponge and rag.

“Captain Rog—Steve you really don’t have to the wash the dishes,” Bucky insisted.

“No, I don’t but maybe I’m trying to impress somebody,” he winked nonchalantly at Bucky.

Bucky’s mind raced, was Steve talking to him? “I’m sure they’ll be impressed,” he smiled before racing out of the room and back down to the galley. He needed to tell Vision to get the fucking show on the road, so the Avengers didn’t starve to death. 

Bucky found Vision standing over a pot of boiling water stirring in pasta noodles. “Vision I need the ETA on that food, the table is already clear.”

“What? Bucky you’ve got to be fucking kidding me. I need ten more minutes at least,” Vision said frantically.

“I don’t know what to tell you. Captain America got up and helped me clear the table, what was I supposed to say? No.”

“Yes, tell him to sit back and relax it’s his vacation! You need to do your fucking job and manage the guests!” Vision raised his voice at Bucky.

“Well, what the fuck do you want me to do? The tables have already been cleared!” Bucky spat back.

“Keep the liquor flowing, make sure Stark is happy he’s the one responsible for the tip.”

“Fine,” Bucky said and rushed back up to the guests. He grabbed one of the bottles of tequila Mr. Stark had requested. He stopped in the hall for a brief moment, still seething in anger over his interaction with the chef.

Bucky grabbed six shot glasses for the tequila from the bar and headed to the table.

“There he is!” Stark shouted semi-belligerently. The man was balancing on the edge of tipsy and drunk.

“The second course is going to take a few more minutes, so I thought I’d bring you out a little something to hold you over,” Bucky said smiling at the guests and holding up the bottle of 1942 Don Julio.

The other guests seemed pleased, but Stark’s faced stayed neutral. “This is not the tequila I asked for,” he stated bluntly sobering up really fast.

Bucky’s smile fell from his face for a brief moment before returning. “My apologies which one did you request so I can order and have it on the boat for next charter?” Bucky replied not showing any kind annoyance at the request. Bucky knew he ordered the right tequila, at least it was the one on the list Stark had provided.

“Don Julio real tequila,” he replied taking a long sip of his cocktail.

“Is there a difference?” Steve asked with disbelief. The other Avengers slumped into their chairs awkwardly, like they were watching their parents argue or something. Natasha rolled her eyes and shot Steve a very pointed look.

“Yes, Steve there is a huge difference,” Stark spat back. Steve just scowled in response, but fortunately stayed quiet.

“Unfortunately, Mr. Stark I do not have the bottle you requested on the ship. Is there anything else I can get for you instead?” Bucky asked sweetly.

“The 1942 will work,” he said with a shrug like he didn’t really give a fuck either way.

“Yes sir,” Bucky said and began pouring the shots. But then, of course, Steve had to come to his rescue, Bucky noticed him seething in righteous anger from across the table. This was about to get ugly.

“If you didn’t care in the first place, why did you make such a big deal out of it?” Steve asked with a look of disgust on his face. “That bottle’s cost could’ve fed my family for a month when I was a kid and your fucking complaining about it!” Steve exclaimed getting red in the face.

Natasha put her hand on his shoulder, “calm down Steve, it’s not worth it.”

Stark did not respond, he just rolled his eyes and downed the shot Bucky poured for him.

“Again, my apologies,” Bucky said before exiting as quickly as possible.

\---

Bucky ended up in bed at 1 that morning, which was pretty solid when Sharon was the other stewardess on duty at night. He replayed his conversation with Steve in his head, who was he trying to impress? Bucky couldn’t help but feel the comment was directed towards himself. Maybe it was wishful thinking. There is no way that Captain America was into guys, but hey, you know what they say about making assumptions.

Wanda was still awake when Bucky climbed into his bunk, “Hey Wanda?”

Wanda groaned, interrupted from the blissful silence, “What Bucky?”

“Do you think Captain America’s gay?” he asked with sincerity.

Wanda stayed silent for a few moments, “you’re fucking crazy go to bed.”

So, Bucky did.

\---

Bucky woke up at 9am on the dot, he felt refreshed and a lot less hungover than the morning before. Wanda had been up since seven that morning, it was her turn to set up breakfast service. Bucky took a quick shower and ate breakfast. He had to be on deck by 10.

He clipped his walkie to his belt and went up to the deck for the day. The guests had already been fed and were lounging on the top deck while the deck crew was launching the water toys.

Bucky rounded the corner and was met face to face with a very shirtless Captain America. The bigger man bumped into him; he hadn’t been looking where he was going. 

“Oh my god, I’m sorry,” Steve said as he held on to Bucky and steadied him. Bucky’s heart felt like it was getting shot through with electric currents, it was beating a million miles a minute. He was completely and utterly smitten by a straight guy. What the fuck.

“Um… it’s ok,” Bucky managed to say. “Is there anything I can help you with?” he asked remembering that he had a fucking job to do and couldn’t drool all over this perfect man, he had to remain professional.

“No thank you, James, I’m just looking for a bathroom,” Steve said with a charming smile and a wink. A motherfucking wink.

“Down the hall,” Bucky said with his mega-watt smile.

“Thank you, James.”

James, Bucky loved the way he said his name.

\---

Beachside lunch was always a bitch to set up, requiring multiple back and forth boat trips and all hands-on deck. Including Captain Carol, who was helping anchor the boat as Peter and Scott took the stewardesses to and from the beach with multiple platters of food while Bucky supervised and catered to the guests as they waited.

When they were finally able to leave the ship and headed to the beach. It was Bucky, Sharon, the Avengers, and Sam piloting the boat. The Avengers made small talk, mostly ignoring the staff, which Bucky was thankful for because he didn’t want to say anything moronic to Steve. Which would definitely happen if he so much as opened his mouth at the moment?

But leave it to Tony Stark, who had been drinking since 9am, and Sharon fucking Sharon to completely expose Bucky to Steve.

“So, James do you guys like hook up on the ship?” Tony asked out of the blue. Bucky choked on his own saliva. Before he could answer Steve butted in.

“Inappropriate question Tony,” Steve scolded shaking his head.

Tony chose to ignore him and continue with his line of questioning. “Honestly, dude, if I were you I would go for Hope.”

“That’s because you like women who boss you around,” Natasha joked.

“She would definitely wear the pants in the relationship,” Tony snickered.

“As beautiful as Hope is, she is actually in a relationship,” Bucky commented as vaguely as possible. Scott and Hope had been on a few dates.

“Plus, James is gay!” Sharon added in. Why the fuck would she say that? Why did she feel the need to out him to a boat full of strangers? Because Sharon sucks that’s why.

Bucky sat there fuming and biting his tongue. Steve, however, was smiling to himself.


End file.
